Summer Veggie Pasta with Herbs, Bacon and Gorgonzola

It has been quite some time since my last post. We had a 3 week vacation in Michigan and I have been slow to get back to reality! It was wonderful having a break from not only the daily "to do" list, but from technology as well. Our society is overly plugged in these days and as much as I love some of the technologies available today, I noticed that I felt much more relaxed and present without the constant consumption of checking facebook statuses, thinking in blog, reading blogs, and searching, searching, searching for recipes, window treatments, shoes, a diagnosis of weird symptoms, weather conditions, paint colors, decor ideas, hiking trails...sound familiar? 

But now I am back and I am ready to recommit to my blog because I truly believe that sharing healthy recipes, important knowledge about food, and encouraging people to garden is important. In fact, I have 4 friends here in Denver that started a garden this year because of me (and since I'm pretty new here, 4 is a pretty large percentage of my friends!) It is those small influences in life that can make a big impact on the world and it makes me feel warm and fuzzy to know that my passion for cooking and gardening actually inspires others to pick up a spatula or a shovel and literally dig in! Cooking and gardening have become less important to people and I think it is because not only are we way too busy to be bothered by such trivial chores as feeding our families healthy, homemade food, but our country has no food culture. Just about every other culture in this world revolves around the growing and preparation of food and people take real pride in cooking from scratch. So hopefully, in time, we can redefine our generation as the one who took a stand against industrialized food and got back into the kitchen!!!

So this was the recipe that finally got me back to my computer because it was just too good not to share! I am getting more creative and better at cooking without a recipe and one of my favorite types of meals to play around with is pasta! I knew I would be using a ton of veggies and as many of them from the garden as possible. I always use at least 4-5 cloves of garlic in everything I make, but with this pasta, I felt like using even more...8 or 9 seemed about right. I also had 4 pieces of organic bacon leftover from camping and, well, I do have a love affair with bacon so that was a no brainer. I wanted to use a small amount of strong cheese for some flavor. At the store I found an organic, raw milk gorgonzola from Oregon which sounded perfect. I also remembered I had some white wine in the fridge so, why not? And the highlight of the dish is tons of fresh herbs. I went out to the garden and snipped a handful of thyme, oregano, basil, sage, rosemary and parsley. A dash of olive oil and a squeeze of lemon and viola! Personally, I thought this dish to be restaurant worthy though I might be biased :) Bon Appetite!

Summer Veggie Pasta with Herbs, Bacon and Gorgonzola

serves 6-8

Ingredients:

16 oz pasta (I used Tinkyada Brown Rice Spirals)

2 Tablespoons olive oil

2 Tablespoons butter or ghee 

1 Tablespoon reserved bacon fat

8-10 cloves of garlic pressed or minced

1 zucchini cut in half lengthwise and thinly sliced

1 yellow squash cut in half lengthwise and thinly sliced

1/2 yellow onion sliced in crescents

1 cup halved cherry tomatoes

2 ears of corn, kernals removed

1 cup sliced mushrooms

1 cup asparagus cut into 1 inch pieces

1/3 cup white wine

2 large handfuls spinach,  chopped 

1/3 cup toasted pine nuts

1/4 cup reserved pasta water

4 slices bacon chopped

2-4 ounces gorgonzola crumbled

1/3 cup chopped fresh herbs

juice from 1 lemon

Directions:

Cook pasta according to directions. While pasta is cooking, cook bacon reserving 1 Tablespoon of fat. Crumble and set aside. Add 2 Tablespoons olive oil and 2 Tablespoons butter to the pan and heat on medium high. Add onions and cook for at least 5 minutes until they begin to brown. Add the remaining vegetables,  and saute for several minutes. Add the white wine and herbs and let simmer until the majority of the liquid has evaporated. Add drained pasta back into the pot, add in the chopped spinach immediately so it can wilt, the vegetable mixture, pasta water, bacon, gorgonzola, pinenuts, and lemon juice and toss to coat. Serve with salt and freshly grated black pepper.

Gluten Free, Vegan Teff Banana Pancakes with Spinach and Blueberries

You don't have to be Gluten Free or Vegan to enjoy these delicious pancakes that pack a seriously nutritious punch! Gluten Free baking can be a time consuming endeavor with so so results. These pancakes, on the other hand, are so quick and easy to make and satisfies the craving for something sweet and doughy without the guilt! I always freeze the leftovers for quick breakfasts and snacks for my toddler who gobbles them up.

Teff is an ancient grain originating in Ethiopia. Because the grains of teff are so small, the bulk of the grain consists of the bran and germ resulting in a highly nutrient dense grain. It is high in calcium (17 times the calcium found in whole wheat and barley!), phosphorous, iron, copper, aluminum, barium and thiamin. It also has an excellent amino acid composition and is high in protein and fiber. Teff is definitely one of my top choices for gluten free flours and can be found in the Gluten Free baking section at your grocery store or at a Health Food store.

This recipe was slightly modified from the original which I found at The Whole Life Nutrition Kitchen Website, along with some great pancake tips. I've made the original several times but couldn't resist adding some fresh blueberries and spinach...yes spinach! Ever since I have started my love affair with greens, they go in everything! Hopefully my toddler will never learn to turn up his nose to food that is green because that is all this child has ever known! Once greens have been minced, they can go in just about everything without affecting the taste...only the color so starting your kids young is a whole lot easier! Who needs food coloring? I throw minced greens in grilled cheeses and quesadillas, pastas, rice, and now pancakes!

I made two batches. One with Blueberries and Spinach and one with Cinnamon and Spinach which makes for less messy snacks. Switching to real Maple Syrup is a great habit to get into since the alternative is filled with sugar and preservatives. Honey, agave, mashed bananas or berries, and almond butter also makes for great toppings.

 

 Teff Banana Pancakes with Blueberries or Cinnamon and Spinach

1 cup teff flour

1/4 cup tapioca flour

2 Tbl ground flax seed

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp sea salt

1 Tbl cinnamon

1 cup water or non dairy milk (I use coconut milk)

1/4 cup mashed ripe banana (1 small banana)

2 Tbl melted virgin coconut oil

1 Tbl honey, agave, or maple syrup

1 cup minced spinach

1/2 cup minced blueberries

In a small bowl mix the dry ingredients. In a separate bowl, mix the wet ingredients and combine with the dry ingredients. Mix in the spinach. I only add blueberries to half the batter. If you want to add them to the whole batter, you might want to add more.

Heat a skillet over medium low heat until hot. Add a little coconut or olive oil and drop pancake batter by the 1/4 to 1/2 cupful. Flip pancakes after tiny bubbles form. Cook for another minute then transfer to a plate. Add about a 1/2 tsp of oil between batches.